Hey everyone. Just picked up a 2000 with the 3800. 5 speed manual, crank windows, manual door locks, no cruise control.

I already tried bypassing VATS for sh*ts and giggles and got nowhere. When the key is turned to 'ON', the only warning lights that come on the gauges are 'seat belt' and 'security' (then security turns off about 5 seconds later). Also, the digital odometer does not power on. With the key still 'ON', I can hear the fuel pump priming itself every 5 seconds. Is it supposed to do this?

The car is getting spark and I checked for fuel at the rails. I'll be renting a fuel pressure tester today to find out of it's getting enough. The car will crank with no hope of firing up. Had it running with some starting fluid yesterday. It's in absolutely immaculate condition for a 2000.

Could this be a PCM problem? I checked all fuses under the hood and on the side of the dash.

Thanks!

 

It's not the VATS, or the security light would stay on. The diagnostic/monitoring lights turning on with the key, then turning off is normal.
Get back after you check fuel pressure. Just because you can hear the pump cycling doesn't mean you have sufficient pressure. And no, the pump shouldn't keep cycling on and off like that with the key on. Turning on the key activates the fuel pump relay, primes the pump, then the relay switches off and stays off (supposed to). The relay and pump shouldn't keep getting activated like that, you may have an electrical gremlin there.
Was this a salvage car?

 

Thanks for the quick reply. There are NO diagnostic warning lights coming on with the key turned to on except for seat belt. It's my understanding that pretty much the whole left side of the gauge cluster is supposed to light up when it's turned to 'on'?

I'll let ya know about the fuel pressure. Yes, it has a salvage-rebuildable FL title. I have a feeling the previous owner couldn't figure it out either and said F it lol

 

Yes, the whole dash should light up when the key turns on, then most turn off. Check engine light is one of them that should remain on.
Figured it was a salvage, from the writing on the windshield. Did you look up the salvage history? It may have been a flood car, and you're seeing the residual effects of when electrical components and wiring connections get wet, short out, and/or corrode.

 

This is one of a couple of cars I purchased through Copart... Normally when the cars are flood vehicles they are branded as such. That's what I've seen when buying through Copart, at least. Autocheck shows no water history for this particular vehicle.

I'd also like to mention that 1. I can't get my OBD scanner to connect to the car's PCM. There is power, but it refuses to connect. and 2. When the key is ON, aside from the pump priming every 5 sec, there is a constant rattle/ vibration that can be heard/ felt on the throttle body/ MAF sensor. Weird. I won't have access to a fuel pressure tester 'til at least tomorrow.

Is that your Camaro in your sig?

 

Make sure the grounds for the connector are good pins 4 and 5 should be your grounds. If you have voltage at pin 16 and ground @4+5 the next thing to do would be to scope you serial communication line which is pin 2 but unless you are a technician you probably dont have an oscilliscope available so begin by checking the pcm ground and your ground distribution for the engine management stuff. Check the basics first then suspect the PCM after ruling out the other stuff. (Fuel pressure/ spark/ etc.)

On another note, I ran into an issue like this on a junkyard cavalier and after scoping the communication line (pin 2) we showed nothing and were able to confirm a faulty PCM. So yes it COULD be a pcm issue.

 

As you know, Copart auctions off insurance "totaled" cars. So, being in otherwise perfect shape, you gotta ask yourself why did an insurance company write it off? Unless it was a theft recovery. Given what's happened more recently with our weather, and the way the car is behaving, I'm still thinking flood. You have an interconnected electrical/electronic issue, and the PCM would be a prime suspect. And yes, that's my Camaro in the sig.

 

Pull the covers off the underside of the dash and the kick panels and check for any signs of water or dirt that would have been carried by water. If you find any part it out.

Next pull the PCM itself and look for water. I have never done a Copart auction but I have also never heard of a car be a total lose and someone trying to sell it with giving the reason it was totaled.

 

If the engine starts with starter fluid then I would start looking into the fuel delivery systems of the car. The FP cycling over and over is not normal and the throttle body should not keep moving when there is no input from the petal.

The fuel injectors work by the power system giving them 12V through a relay that is controlled by the security system, and the PCM providing the ground to open the injector. If the PCM does not have a good ground for itself it will not be able to provide a ground for the injectors and it may not be able to get a proper control signal to the throttle servo, which could be the reason for it to "vibrate" A bad PCM ground could also cause it to reset the FP Relay. If I were you I would start hunting grounds. OH and no ground = no reference voltage for the serial data for the scanner.

Massey

 

If you haven't done so already, also check the fuses powering the injectors, no power- no fuel. Injectors should have constant 12 volts on the hot side whenever the key is on the ON or Start positions.